DADvocate

ok, theres things not said in this account.

first, in the UK we dont have jaywalking as a crime, secondly if a strange man came up to you wearing a bomber jacket, and told u this, and you didnt know he was a police officer, you would ask to see his police ID.

anyone can dress up as a police man, but an valid POLICE id card, is proof.

secondly, 2 people got killed jaywalking on that corner, and that allows 5 police men to jump on him..

he says its bushes fault ultimately because bush is doing the same thing but on a global stage, over reacting.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/01/11/nhistorian11.xml

Because he was wearing a "rather louche" bomber jacket that covered his uniform, the professor did not realise he was a policeman.

"I thanked him for his advice and went on," said the professor. When Officer Leonpacher tried to stop him and demanded to see identification, the professor asked to see his, which he "didn't take kindly to". "He said 'I am going to arrest you'," Prof Fernandez-Armesto said. "In the culture I come from this wouldn't mean that the conversation was over.

"Nor would it mean that you were about to be subjected to terrible, terrible violence. This young man kicked my legs from under me, wrenched me round in what I think is a sort of a judo move, pinned me to the ground, wrenched my arms behind my back and handcuffed me.

"Naturally I was bridling at this moment and he called his colleagues to his assistance. I had five burly policemen pinioning me to the ground, pressing my neck with really very severe pain. I'm a mass of contusions and grazes

** is it right for 5 burly police men to jump ontop of someone for such a minor crime.

IN the UK you can ask for police ID from any policeman, it stops or reduces fake police.
 

the other part is, we were taught to cross the road,

and thats what bush has started, iraq is more dangerous now than ever, afghanistan which the taliban are going back into power.

(and according to another article, he hadnt got his passport it was in his hotel room, we dont carry id's in the UK, we get told dont take your passport with you incase its stolen. http://www.ajc.com/services/content/metro/atlanta/2007/01/09/0110metwalk.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=13

"When I questioned who he was, he said something to the effect of 'When I give you an order, you obey it,' " Fernandez-Armester said. "I asked him what his authority was because I didn't see a badge. But he was extremely upset I had questioned his bona fides

When the historian allegedly repeatedly refused to produce ID (Fernandez-Armesto said he left his passport in his hotel room and was flummoxed when he realized he did not have it), Leonpacher said he told him he was under arrest. As he put his hands behind his back, "he pulled away and grabbed me. He said 'leave me alone, let me go.' I told him 'you're under arrest, stop resisting.' "

at what point does it become overkill to arrest someone.

**The planet is policed by a violent, arbitrary, stupid and dangerous force. Within the USA, the courts struggle to maintain individual rights under the bludgeons of the "war on terror," defending Guantanamo victims and striving to curb the excesses of the system.**

this anti european sentiment **Don 't you get tired of socialist, European snobs who "know more than us?" Just pay your fine and shut-up* anti british sentiment, is the problem, bush doesnt care about us in europe, but he expects us to obey him, we see the wrongness in bushes actions, and we dare say so, we are snobs, we are less because we dare contradict the american leader.
 

The story is a little more complicated than I relayed but I didn't want to retell it when you could read it yourself. Which you obviously did.

In the U.S. each locality determines whether jaywalking is a crime or not. However, it is unusually for jaywalking laws to be enforced. It is not, unfortunately, unusual for policemen in the U.S. to be on "power trips" and bully civilians. This is what happened here, no more, no less. Bush had nothing to do with it. If someone wants to make a lame analogy, go ahead. But Bush had no causal effect as the good professor implies Bush did and it is ridiculous to say he did.

If Bush caused the policeman's actions then Bush must be responsible for the good jail and the good natured, reasonable judge. The good professor is being quite selective in where he gives credit or blame. The good professor's interpretation of the events is out of touch with reality.

The Cincinnati police, for a period, "killed" what was considered an excessive number of people during pursuits or while in custody. During this same period they even arrested a grandmother for feeding money to parking meters so that people wouldn't get parking tickets. All this happened during Bill Clinton's presidency. Is he the cause for the deaths and the arrest? Did he create an atmosphere that encouraged such things? Of course not. And neither has George Bush.

BTW - Georgia law enforcement officers have a long time reputation for nastiness. Check out this movie, Macon County Line from 1974.
 

Woody - correct on all counts. The real over the top part is the professor's tying all this into Bush and Iraq. Indeed, I don't see how the policeman could have known where the professor was from when he initially stopped him. And, even if the policeman was a jerk, it had nothing to do with Bush.

The reason this post caught my eye is that, growing up the son of a professor, it reminded of so many professors and how they interpreted events. Often the interpretations included egocentrism, fallaious globalizing, and a touch of paranoia. He just couldn't see the event for what it was or accept his responsibility in it.

So what if others jaywalked? I see dozens of speeders everyday. If I get caught speeding, I don't think the cop singled me out. I think I just lost a single round in the "getting away with speeding" game.

My link to "Macon County Line" was intended in humor. Jethro done good in that movie.
 

thats why i posted the article, it shows the other side, if you had just seen the policemans side, then you would have assumed he was correct 100% (i still dont see how at least 8 policemen were needed to deal with one man) this way you can see the british side of stuff.
 

There is a recently dead state trooper in Tennessee as a result of a "simple" traffic stop. Police can't be too careful. I remember 15 or so years ago two deputy sheriffs picked up an old man whose car had broken down on a hot summer day in order to take him for help. He shot both of them in the back of the head with a .357 magnum. He had been in prison in the 1930's and, in his dementia, thought they were taking him back. (Old story, couldn't find on the Web.)
 

And this a professor wants to get a green card so that he can live in one of the nastiest countries in the world?
What a pillock!!